How to not get mad during a match

[CreeDo]

A few thoughts that helped me:

• replacement shafts are expensive.

• your opponent loves to see you melt down, it fires him up while you keep playing worse and worse.
Don't give him the satisfaction. Especially since he might use it against you by subtly (or not) trying
to rag you on.

• Most of the time when I got visibly mad, it was to indicate to the rest of the world "I'm better than this, and it crushes my ego to let you guys see me playing worse than I should." ...that was a hard thing to admit because basically it means I'm hanging on the opinion of a bunch of sweaters who don't even shoot at my speed. It was kind of embarrassing when I thought of it this way... "I'm doing theatrics to play up to a crowd, because I want to soothe my bruised ego, like some sort of monkey performing for a banana. That's lower than low."

• One of the underrated things about keeping mental attitude is to be 100% honest about the difficulty of a shot. You're SUPPOSED to miss a ball from 9 feet away, you're SUPPOSED to miss when jacked up over another ball. Just be honest and say "well, I can't get too mad because that was a missable ball. It's not like I did something stupid, or halfassed it. I tried my best and didn't make it." Not trying is maybe the only thing worth getting mad about.

• Nobody wants to play or even be around angry people.

• Fake it til you make it is a real good attitude for a lot of things. The physical acts of showing your anger fires it up and makes it worse. You might thing "even if I don't show it, I'm still angry mentally."... you'd be surprised at how effective it is to hold back the physical part. The mental part follows. You'll be back to your normal self faster if you don't smack your stick or yell at someone.

 

[pt109]

Temper tantrums are just a form of crying over spilt milk.
Outbursts are often the result of becoming aware of your ignorance....
...or simply perceiving that you didn't try hard enough.

But you don't want to lose your passion, it can lead to doing something
great.

Sooo, try getting mad BEFORE you miss.
This way, you use your energy and passion to actually do you some good.

 

[OneIron]

No matter what happens (good or bad), don't change your expression. Also, don't vocalize your frustration. Any time you talk about something that's bothering you, you give it strength. Shoot your shot and when you miss, leave the table calmly and quietly and sit down.

When the match is over, always compliment your opponent, shake their hand, and refrain from making excuses about your play. These habits will soon relieve your anger and frustration and make you a better player (and person).

If you want to read a couple of excellent books, I would recommend Dale Carnegie:

"How To Stop Worrying and Start Living"
"How To Win Friends and Influence People"

These two books can literally change your life. They did mine. Good luck!

 

[rayjay]

It starts with letting go. Holding on to tight to anything will result in loss of ones self. Patience , forbearance, forgiveness. Not only for someone else , but yourself as well.
You are only as strong as your weakest link. If you cannot master self you will never master anything else

This is wise advice... the key to anger management is frustration management. Recognize it early, acknowledge it, take a deep breath and let it go.

 

[incognito]

Certain recreational drugs can help in this endeavor. :thumbup:

Anyone have any tips on how to control your temper when your losing or not playing very well in a match? I need some help with this, badly!lol

 

[TheBook]

Read the book "Pleasures in Small Motions" . I am not sure if that is the exact title since I have loaned it to a team mate but it is something like that.

 

[poolhustler]

Pleasures of Small Motions is a good read!!

Instead of getting mad, think of each mistake as a learning experience.

Channel that energy into positive, not negative.

I am not one to talk, as I get frustrated easily myself.

 

[bullshot]

this might sound odd, but laugh. I use to get pissed off when i would get a bad roll or when my opponent got a good roll and lately instead of getting mad i'll laugh it off.

 

[OneIron]

Read the book "Pleasures in Small Motions" . I am not sure if that is the exact title since I have loaned it to a team mate but it is something like that.

Just bought it for my wife. She won't turn it loose yet.

 

[Taco]

Try to take your game (and yourself) a lot less seriously. When you miss a tough shot or a hanger, act like you've been there before and just walk back to your chair. Don't slap the table, whip your stick or bury your forehead into the table. Even Efren dogs it. Think of it as a well-played safe and just drop it. Think about how you're going to run out next time. Play in the now, not the then. If you have to react or burst, do what Efren does, smile and look at the ceiling...but I'd counsel against reacting in ANY way. Don't give your opponent the satisfaction or edge of seeing that a miss gets to you. If your cue ball runs a little short or long, don't bloviate and curse your rolls...act like that's the way you wanted it to roll (believe it, too) and drive on.

Good advice. And props for using bloviate, one of my favorite words, in a post.

 

[incognito]

Scratch your head and smile when you make a mistake like the master does.

It definitely is a sign of weakness and increases your opponent's confidence when you get mad. :thumbup:

Watch Efren Reyes play and try to emulate his attitude.

Also, anger in pool is fear. Showing fear to an opponent during a match will only increase their confidence.

Good luck!

 

[incognito]

It's a common tendency for pool players to forget about all the good rolls they got and get mad as soon as they get a bad roll. Just remember that the rolls, good and bad, even out for everybody. Also, the better you play the luckier you tend to get.

this might sound odd, but laugh. I use to get pissed off when i would get a bad roll or when my opponent got a good roll and lately instead of getting mad i'll laugh it off.

 

[TheBook]

Just bought it for my wife. She won't turn it loose yet.

When I got it and was reading it my wife thought I was reading porn. When I show her it was for pool I think she was disappointed. :thumbup: